The Blacksmith's Apprentice
by niidqethjot
Summary: Needing to fix his newest invention, Hiccup heads to the forge. However, he soon realizes that he is not alone. What is Gustav doing there? And why isn't Gobber as surprised as he is?


"Well that could have gone better," Hiccup said to his dragon as they landed next to the forge. He was a little sore after his test with his flight suit didn't go exactly as planned. He hadn't so much flown as fallen. He hadn't been very high up when the suit failed, but the impact upon hitting the water still hurt. "But it was only the first test, so since I didn't die, I'm going to consider it a success," Hiccup declared to Toothless, unlatching his leg from the stirrup.

Overall, it could have gone a lot worse, and the suit was still mostly intact. After he patched it up, he could test it again tomorrow. Maybe if he flew higher, the wind would catch the suit better. It would mean a longer way to fall if something went wrong, but Toothless would be there to catch him if it failed again. Hopefully. Regardless, the suit needed repairs, and to do that, he needed to visit the forge.

As Hiccup ducked into the stall, he heard the unmistakable sound of movement that indicated Gobber was there. Without glancing at the man, Hiccup turned towards the wall with his tools on it to get started on his project.

"Hey Gobber, I'm only going to be here for a minute," Hiccup called over his shoulder. He rummaged around looking for the hammer and awl necessary to fix the flight suit, letting out a triumphant grunt when he found them amid the mess.

Grabbing some leather, he called out, "Hey, do you still need help on that order of saddles for the Thorstons, because after I test this out tomorrow, I could maybe… come here… and…"

Hiccup paused on his way over to his workroom in the back. Gobber was nowhere to be seen, but there, standing next to the bellows, avoiding eye contact and fidgeting like he would burst into flame if he stopped moving, was Gustav.

Hiccup furrowed his brow in confusion. "Hey Gustav, what brings you here?"

Gustav glanced at Hiccup, then quickly averted his eyes, remembering that he was trying to avoid eye contact.

"Oh, you know…stuff…"

Hiccup fought the urge to roll his eyes. "Care to elaborate? You really shouldn't be in here without Gobber's permission."

Gustav continued to shift his weight from foot to foot, while keeping his eyes focused on the floor. "Well, actually… I kind of… do… have permission."

Hiccup continued to stare at the boy, not sure if he was just a really bad liar, or if he actually was supposed to be there and just didn't want to admit it.

Something was off. Usually Gustav was as loud and obnoxious as Snotlout, but now he seemed as though Hiccup caught him doing something extremely embarrassing. As Hiccup continued to wait for Gustav to explain why he was actually there, Gobber suddenly burst through the door, chatting away happily, completely oblivious to the awkward moment he had just interrupted.

"Sorry about that lad, just had to go deal with that Nadder. Now, Gustav, just hand me that hammer and I'll show you how to…Hiccup! What brings you here?" Gobber asked, finally noticing the other person in the room

"Hey Gobber. I just came here to do a quick repair on something I'm working on," Hiccup replied. He waited to see if Gobber would explain what was going on, but the silence stretched on. Rather than beating around the bush anymore, Hiccup got straight to the point.

"What's Gustav doing here?" Hiccup asked, with a tinge of annoyance in his voice from still not having an answer to the question after several minutes.

"Oh! Well, Gustav is my new apprentice," Gobber declared loudly, trying to sound casual and utterly failing.

"Apprentice?" Hiccup said, not believing what he was hearing. He had been Gobber's apprentice ever since he was little. He had learned everything he knew about smithing from the man standing in front of him. And now this kid thought he could just waltz right in and replace him? And Gobber was letting him?

Some of Hiccup's thoughts must have shown on his face, because Gobber took him by the arm, saying, "Why don't we have a little private talk. Just for a minute." As an afterthought, he turned around and said, "Gustav, start sweeping the shop. You don't want any dirt or debris interfering with your metal work."

As Gobber led him into his workshop, Hiccup glanced at Gustav begrudgingly grabbing the broom. His mind instantly went back to his very first day at the forge. Stoick had been looking for a way to keep him from getting underfoot and eventually had assigned the task to Gobber. Given Hiccup's propensity for destruction, Gobber determined that the only task he could trust him to do was sweep the floor, just like Gustav was doing now. Hiccup had been so excited that he was trusted to do anything that he went at the task with gusto, sweeping anything and everything the minute it hit the floor. Unfortunately, Gobber underestimated Hiccup's ability to attract trouble. Brooms are rather flammable after all.

Hiccup was pulled out of his musings when Gobber started to speak. "I'm sorry lad. I should have mentioned this sooner."

"Mentioned what? Gobber, what's going on? I thought I was your apprentice!" Hiccup said, trying to stay calm and wrap his head around the situation.

"You are! Or at least you were… but I need a new one now," Gobber explained lamely. At the look of hurt and confusion on Hiccup's face, Gobber sighed and continued. "Look, why do blacksmiths take on apprentices?"

Hiccup was caught off guard by the question, and struggled to see where Gobber was going with it. "Um… so they can teach them about smithing?"

"Yes, and what does the apprentice do with this knowledge?" Gobber went on.

Hiccup paused for a moment as he tried to piece together what Gobber was saying. "They become a blacksmith?" Hiccup tried, still completely lost.

His mentor sighed, clearly frustrated that his point wasn't getting through. "Yes, they become a blacksmith. Now, Hiccup, one more question. What are you going to be when you grow up?"

"I-," Hiccup froze, finally understanding what Gustav was doing out there. Hiccup closed his eyes as the full situation washed over him. He let out a sigh of his own. "I'm going to be the chief," he said dejectedly.

"Exactly," Gobber said kindly. "Look, the fact of the matter is, I'm not going to be around forever, and someday, the village is going to need a new blacksmith. Don't get me wrong, you would make a great blacksmith." He flashed a grin at Hiccup. "Frankly, you're a better smith than I ever was." He chuckled. Then, becoming serious, Gobber said, "But you're an even better leader, and that's where you're needed, as chief. Not here in this small stall sharpening swords all day." He waited for Hiccup to make some indication that he had heard anything he just said.

It was now Hiccup's turn to stare at the floor. He had always known that he was supposed to be chief one day, but he had never stopped to consider everything that meant giving up. He could never be a blacksmith; he would be too busy leading the tribe to worry about sharpening weapons and making saddles. He likely wouldn't be able to keep working on his experiments, at least not like he did now. At that very moment, Hiccup was supposed to be with his dad, learning the finer points of chiefing, but instead he had snuck away, first flying and now to the forge. What about the academy? How would he continue teaching people how to train dragons if all his time was spent on his chiefly duties?

His stomach churned as another thought hit him: what about all his private time with Toothless? His father was busy every day and rarely had free time to spend with Thornado. Would that be him and Toothless soon? Would there be no more random flights all over the Archipelago just to see what they could find? No more finding new islands and expanding their map of the world? No more recklessly jumping off of Toothless's back to see if his latest invention would work? What exactly had he signed up for with this chief thing?

"Hiccup? Are you still there lad?" Gobber questioned him, giving him a concerned look after the long period of silence.

"Yeah, I'm still here," Hiccup said taking a deep breath to calm himself down.

He wasn't chief yet. He still had time, and just because he would be very busy in the future, didn't mean he had to give up everything he loved. It was like his father had told him in one of their talks that he had only half paid attention to. "Being chief is all about balance. Balancing the needs of the tribe with your own. The tribe has to come first, but that doesn't mean you can completely ignore yourself." He dimly realized that he should probably start listening to his father more. He was the one with experience in this after all. Still, he couldn't completely shake the tightness in his chest.

Hiccup looked at the man he had considered a mentor for most of his life, and forced himself to smile. "I guess you do need a new apprentice. You aren't exactly the youngest fellow around," he joked automatically.

"I'm glad you understand, and you'll always be welcome to use the- Hey wait a minute!"

"See you later Gobber! I'll bring these back later! Have fun with you lesson!" Hiccup said as he scurried out the door, tools in hand. Before he left, he caught one more glance of Gustav, trying to look busy sweeping.

The forge had become like a second home to him over the years. He remembered waking up early and meeting Gobber there to work on large orders, then staying into the late hours to work on his own inventions. It had always seemed like a special place; somewhere only he and Gobber belonged.

But not anymore.

Hiccup tried to push down the strange feeling in his stomach at the thought, but found it impossible. He needed air, preferably whipping his face at high speeds on the back of a Night Fury.

Before he left, Hiccup spared some parting words for Gustav.

"Make sure you don't let the broom get to close to the furnace. Brooms are rather flammable after all."


End file.
